The writing on the peely painted door...

I'm off on wonderful adventures today. But I feel a heavy feeling, like sadness on my shoulders. Yes, a bit of sadness. The kind of sadness you can feel in a thickly painted oil painting. The kind of sadness that you don't want to just slough off...because it might be trying to tell you something. So, I'll let it visit, but not stay forever.

And I'm going to drink more coffee and embrace this new day. :)

Smiley goodness

I'm starting out my high school senior sessions early this year and if this shoot is any indication, it's going to be a great year!







Now I'm off...to hang with the kids (who are on spring break), have some chic-fil-a for dinner (yay for not cooking!), and finish some projects that have been waiting in the wings. I may blog again this week. I may not. I'm feeling crazy so who knows what I'll do. :)

things I know

I think I might be spreading myself too thin. I have a million ideas that I want to implement...but I suck at juggling/multi-tasking/switching-from-one-thing-to-the-next. But I love EVERYTHING that I'm doing (besides laundry and grocery shopping). How does one go about fitting it all in without feeling like their head is going to spin off? And I'm actually not that busy right now. What I have to do in a day is totally manageable. But it's all of my ideas swirling about in my brain that won't let me breathe, rest, enjoy the NOW.
I know that scheduling myself (with time limits) is helpful. I know that checking a million blogs "for inspiration" is NOT. I think I might be on inspiration overload. I know that journaling is good and helpful. I know that perfectionism is NOT. I know that taking time to get organized is good. I know that rushing is not.

And maybe I need a bit of silence.

Just some random thoughts as I get on with my day. I'm off to run errands. do laundry. work on a necklace. hug the kids. try not to be grouchy with the hubby. think about my shoot tomorrow. make some phone calls. and breathe.

Hot with a capital H

At least in looks!...oh my gosh, it was so cold. You never know what the weather will be like here in Colorado. But she rocked it out. Seriously.









Thanks for hanging in there with me and walking all over downtown in the best shoes ever!:)

uuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmmmm......

nope. I got nothin.

Anyone else's brain like mush from the time change? I can't think straight. And heaven forbid I sit and read a magazine (one of my all-time favorite pastimes), cuz I'll be out like a light.

I'm gonna go sew some new journal covers. :) No soldering for me today.

shanty towns

Did anyone see the Today Show segment on the new homeless? Over 2000, living in tents in some open space in Sacramento. Heating homemade soup in coffee cans over open flames. People who never in their wildest dreams thought they would ever be homeless. Jobs and homes lost. It's happening all over the country.

I've been around homeless people before, but this hit me in an all new way. Because they were like you and me. Regular people, who were hit hard by the economy and ran out of options. I feel completely overwhelmed.

I took this image at a recent photo shoot...we were shooting near the railroad tracks (I'm sure we were trespassing) and I looked over, and there was some one's home. I snapped the shot, feeling a bit guilty...not wanting to invade some one's privacy...but wanting to get a picture of this person's tent. I wondered if the people at the building the tent was near helped him at all. I wondered if he would be insulted if I dropped off a blanket the next time I was doing a shoot there.

And now I'm wondering, are there tent towns in Denver? What can I do? What can I give? How can I get it through our kids that people are hurting...that not getting a Happy Meal or a book at the school's book fair might not be the worst thing that could happen?

I have no answers this morning. But I can't shake the feeling that I'm not doing enough.

Lesson learned

This is what it looks like when you grab an 800 degree soldering iron between your fingers.

I don't know what happened. I was off in my own little world, soldering like crazy. Seriously...who told me that I could handle something that hot?
But now I get to wear this!

I love this necklace. So happy I made it that I'm gonna make more to put in my store.









Oh, and I made Chicken and Cashew Lettuce Cups last night. Oh. My. Gosh. So good. Even the the "I-hate-everything" kids liked it. I made a few adjustments (what else is new!). I thought that fresh grated ginger might be too much for the wee one's sensitive palettes, so I used ground ginger (which blew all over the kitchen cuz I had the window open so who knows how much got in the wok), I omitted the scallions (hubby allergic and I get nasty reflux...maybe tmi here), I added grated carrots to sprinkle on top, and cooked it way longer than it calls for to caramelize the sauce (thanks to my hubby's master cooking skills). Next time I might add some cilantro to it. Served it with some brown rice. SO SO Good. Mom, I promise to invite you over the next time I make it.

Today is Wonderful Husband's birthday. Top Chef Reunion special tonight (are Leah and Hosea together?...oh the suspense!). More soldering (lord help me). Some ordering of prints for clients. Maybe a trip to the antique store.

Or maybe just some time in the sun. I'm feeling wild today...you just never know. :)

welcome Monday

Usually, I hate Mondays. Not because the weekend is over, but because I put so many expectations on myself for the day...all the stuff that I put off over the weekend...my list of "whatevers" that fill my planner...and I never do it all. And I feel like a big fat loser by the end of the day.

But today is different. We (the 4 of us, this nice Walters family unit) took time out of our Sunday to clean the house. And it REALLY needed cleaning. Nothing fancy, like cleaning the baseboards or curtains, just the regular maintenance.

Can you hear me take a deep sign of satisfaction?

What a nice way to start the week. Now my list of things to do is not so long. And I feel like I can think more clearly. Like our house is quieter. Like all the dust and grime was getting in the way of listening to the song of our life.

Today...walmart trip, jewelry making, phone calls, returning emails. Yup, that sounds good. :) Have a good one everyone! If you stop by, feel free to leave me a comment and say hi...I love a good Monday salutation. :)